Two Great Recipes in One Post

Here are two very easy and simple recipes that can either be made separately or done together.  The first is a basic & easy way to cook chicken breast in the crock-pot.  I used my small 1.5 quart sized crock-pot which was perfect for the size of chicken breast I was cooking (just enough for Aaron and I). The chicken will be really moist and somewhat healthy, since it was cooked in it's own natural juices. 

You could actually just make "Ranchy Chicken" at anytime when you have a different recipe that calls for cooked shredded chicken.  Make it ahead in batches and throw it in the fridge or freezer till your ready for your next meal. Than pull it out, let it thaw out (if you froze it) and bam...you just skipped a few steps and your chicken will have an extra bit of flavor (than if you were to use plain chicken breast).

RANCHY CHICKEN:
1# chicken breast (boneless and thawed)
Dry ranch package

Rub chicken breast in about half of the dry mix, making sure to coat both sides. Let set for several hours, remember the longer you let set, the fuller the flavor.  [Mine set in the fridge for 2 hours.]

Cook in crock-pot with no other ingredients for 3 hours on LOW (or until fully cooked).  Let cool for 30 minutes in it's own broth before shredding the chicken with a knife.  [Mine literally fell apart without really cutting into it.]

Now the simple way to turn the "Ranchy Chicken" into "Buffalo Ranch Chicken" is by adding two little but very powerful ingredients:

1/2 cup Hot Wing sauce
1/4 cup Ranch dressing

Mix together with chicken until evenly coated, place back into crock-pot and cook on LOW for approx. 2-3 hours (depending on how intense you want the flavor to be; the longer it's cook, the bolder the flavor).

Serve as pulled chicken sandwiches, in tortilla or pita roll-ups, as a pizza toppings, mix in with mac 'n cheese, etc....the list of ways to eat this is ENDLESS!


REVIEW:
Now this is just my own personal way of cooking and making Buffalo Chicken, on a weekday for Aaron and I.  According to Aaron he said, "It's got just enough spice, which is nice"; meaning it's not too spicy and is really creamy with the addition of the ranch being added in.  If you prefer more kick from the hot wing sauce, add more of it or if you like less spice, add more ranch dressing.  This recipe is all about what your preferences are and when your cooking for yourself and one other person, you have more freedom to do that.  This is why this is sort of the ideal cooking for 2 recipe and depending on how you serve the shredded chicken, you may have enough for leftovers later in the week.  Try it as something different when you eat the second time and you'll never run out of recipes!

Enjoy!!

~ Kellie Anne











P.S - this recipe is the first of many that will be shot with my new DSL camera that Aaron got me for Christmas.  It took me a while (with the help of my sister), to figure out the settings on the camera and now I can't wait to shoot all my blog photos with it.  I just think it make the food turn out better and look more appetizing than when I took shots with my camera phone.

Something New Sunday - Slurpin' Up Some Soup

I was in the mood for soup and since I've never made a soup before what better than to give it a try on 'Something New Sunday'.  It has been a while since I've tried something new and was wanting to cook a meal in my crock-pot (I love cooking with my crock-pot).  After searching Pinterest (my 'go-to' for new meal ideas), I came across this yummy sounding recipe. 

 

 

Bacon Cheeseburger Soup - Crockpot Style

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef
1 small onions, diced
1/2 cup of bacon, crumbled (approx. 7 strips)

1 1/2 cups carrots, chopped
2 cups potatoes, cubed
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
8 oz cream cheese, cubed
2 cans of chicken broth

4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp pepper

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup flour
1 cup milk

Directions:

Cook the first three ingredients (ground beef, bacon & onions) in a skillet before putting into crock-pot.  <Make sure meats are fully cooked and onions are opaque in color>

Combine all the veggies, cream cheese and broth together and combine into crock-pot, with the meats.

Add seasonings.

Cook for 7 hours on LOW.

When you are almost ready to serve, dissolve flour into milk and pour into the soup to thicken.  Mix in the cheese and serve when cheese is melted.

ENJOY!!

My Thoughts:
  I'm not going to lie, at first I thought this recipe was going to be a complete FAIL!  When you first put all the ingredients together in the crockpot, it looks like a hot mess of food.  The veggies look odd and really don't have much to do with "cheeseburger" taste and the chicken broth almost watered everything down.  You honestly have let this dish cook for the full 7 hours to get it to look appetizing and for the potatoes to get soft enough to eat.  When I was almost ready to serve the dish, I was debating if it needed to be thicken but Aaron said he thought it still looked 'runny' so I went ahead and did it.  He was right, it most certainly helped make the soup look more like a chowder and the cheese is always an important ingredient in our house.

When it was time to eat, this soup taste just like it's name and boy, was it DELICOUS!  Full of flavor (which I say in almost all my food post), and very, very filling.  We invited my parents over to join us, because it does make a lot of soup.  My dad only had to take one bite and was already raving about it.  My mom had request a small bowl, but had gone back for seconds.  The only change I might make for next time (cause Aaron has already said, I will be making this again), is try it with beef broth. 

Pair it with a pickle spear and you'll feel like your really eating a cheeseburger! :)

~Kellie Anne

Buffalo Chex Mix

It's one of my favorite times of the year...Chex Mix time!  It's the perfect snack to take to a family gathering, share with friends & coworkers, or supper for one when you don't feel like cooking.  And there are so many different styles (thanks to Pinterest of course!) and I can't wait to some day try them all!
 

As you may have noticed from previous post, Aaron and I have love for Frank's Hot Wing Sauce.  We put it on pizza, mix it in our mac 'n cheese, and just about anything you can imagine.  And now we can add to the list... Chex Mix!

Here is what you'll need:
7 cups of any Chex cereal
(I used 3.5 cups each of rice and corn)
3 cups Cheez-Its - Pepper-Jack flavored
3 cups pretzel 

1 stick of melted butter
4 tablespoons hot wing sauce
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dry Dressing Mix
 

The really simple steps:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees

In large bowl: mix cereals, crackers and pretzels 

In a small bowl: mix the melted butter with the hot sauce and dry ranch mix.

Pour over cereal mixture and coat evenly.  Spread mixture onto a large baking sheet. 

Bake for an hour, stirring every 20 minutes. 

Remove pan from oven to a wire rack till cool. 

Store in an airtight container or EAT IT ALL!!

Thoughts:

HOLY AWESOMENESS!! If you love the spicy, flavor fullness of hot wing sauce than this is the perfect snack for you.  Not only do you have the sauce giving you a bunch of flavor, but the added spice from the pepper-jack crackers are a GREAT touch!  The pretzels saltiness is a great contrast too. 

Aaron gave this a try and instantly loved it and when I took it to work to share with colleagues, they too enjoy the unique spin on the traditional Chex Mix.  This does make quite a bit of Chex Mix, so make sure you have an event to take it to or you'll be eating A LOT of Chex Mix (which really isn't really all that bad).


Give it a try and let me know what you think!
~Kellie Anne

Onion Tot Casserole

Nope, you didn't read that wrong.  This is a recipe for Onion Tot Casserole (which is similar to the ever so popular Tater Tot Casserole), but with a different twist!

I found a recipe from a blog where the author had purchased the wrong product and had to make some changes to her original recipe.  I kind of adapted her recipe by adding meat and changing a few ingredients.

Onion Tot Casserole

Ingredients:
1 lb Ground Beef
1 small Onion; chopped

2 lb bag of Onion Tots (I used Ore-Ida brand)
2 cups of Cheddar Cheese
1 can of Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can of Cream of Mushroom


Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350*. 

Spray your cooking dish; I used a 8x11

Brown the ground beef and onion together until beef is no longer pink inside and onions are cooked.

Combine the soups, cheese and tots in a large bowl.

Pour the meat & onions into the dish and top with the tot mixture.

Bake for 50 minutes, uncovered.

Now, the easiest step.... EAT IT!! :)


Reviews:
This dish is full of flavor and a perfect fall dish!  Aaron was all excited when he got home and saw "Tater Tot Casserole" and went at it like he hadn't ate in days.  I let him have a second helping before I explained to him about the onion tots.  He was confused but intrigued that it was onions (which he rarely lets me put in anything) and actually said that he like them over the traditional potatoes.

Hope you like it too!

~Kellie Anne

Mexican Chicken Bake

Are you craving chicken?
Maybe something, spicy?
And how about simple & easy? 

Then this is the recipe for you!

Ingredients & Directions:  
I took two thawed out chicken breast and seasoned both (top and bottom) with 1 tablespoon of black pepper, Greek seasoning and red pepper flakes.  I then placed them in a greased cooking dish and covered them with TOSTITOS® Monterey Jack Queso cheese sauce (about half a cup).  Place inside an oven that is set to 350 and bake for 45 minutes (uncovered).

That's it!

You can tweak the recipe to your liking.  For example, if you have more than two people, than you'll need more chicken breast (obviously) and if you want to add more spice, throw some salsa in with the cheese. 

I've seen all over the internet and on Pinterest how easy and simple chicken bake recipes can be and this one totally was. I think now I could easily switch out the ingredients and make it more Italian inspired or even Asian infused.

Hope you like it! :)
~Kellie Anne


DORITOS® Taco Bake

Well lately Aaron and I have been super busy lately and after long work days, neither one of us want to make anything new or real challenging.  But today is Wednesday (my day off) and I felt like making something new for myself and Aaron.  We haven't had anything spicy lately, so I thought I'd "spice" it up a little for supper! ;)  So, I give you DORITOS® Taco Bake:

Ingredients:
 1# - ground beef
 1 - small yellow onion; chopped
 1 - can Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
 1 - jar of Tostitos Monetery Jack Queso dip
 1 - 10 oz can of enchilada sauce
 1 1/2 cups - shredded cheddar cheese
 3/4 bag - DORITOS® chips

**You can also add any other toppings of your liking; black olives, peppers, tomatoes, etc.**
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large skillet, brown ground beef and cook onions; drain off fat.

Stir in enchilada sauce, simmer 5 minutes.

Press crescent rolls on the bottom of a 9x13 lightly sprayed pan; press seams to seal.

Top crescent rolls with meat mixtures.

Top with cheeses and crushed DORITOS®.

Bake for 30 minutes.  Covered for 20 minutes and uncovered for the last 10.

Enjoy! :)

After crushing all the DORITOS®.
*You know how after you have a few chips, you can't resist licking your fingers... imagine your whole hand covered in the orange dust :) YUMMMMMM

Have a great night! I'm off to play with my nieces who are visiting from Colorado :)
~Kellie Anne


(Recipe adapted from Plain Chicken's Blog:  http://www.plainchicken.com/2012/02/doritos-taco-bake.html)

One Skillet Chicken Parmesan Pasta

If you are craving the yumminess of chicken parmesan, but don't want to go through all the work of breading a chicken breast and frying it up (plus it's a lot healthier then going that route too), this is the recipe for you. Made this dish last night for supper and this is going to be one of my new go-to recipes for some obvious reasons:

Look at that melted cheesy goodness!

• It's quick- takes like 20 minutes tops!
• It's easy - everything is cooked in one dish!
• It's tasty - which is the most import thing of all, right!

Ingredients:

8 oz. of your favorite pasta
(I used whole wheat rotini)

1 jar (26oz) spaghetti sauce

2 cups water

2 lbs of cooked chopped chicken
(I cooked/grilled mine on the George Foreman)

1 cup grated parmesan, divided
1 Tbsp. red pepper flakes

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

2 Tbsp. melted butter

1 tsp. garlic powder

2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded

 

Directions:

In oven-safe skillet, combine pasta, sauce and water. bring to boil. Cover and reduce heat. Simmer for 15-18 minutes, until pasta is tender.  While the noodles were cooking, this is when I cooked the chicken breast (which cuts the time down), but you could use chicken that has been previously cooked.

 

Stir in chicken and half a cup of the parmesan cheese. Cook over low heat about 5 minutes.

Top pasta with mozzarella cheese.

 

Combine panko, melted butter, remaining parmesan, red pepper flakes and garlic powder. Sprinkle over mozzarella cheese.

 

Place under preheated broiler until bread crumbs are toasted and cheese is melted.  

This is what the finished project looked like!!

 

I can't wait to make this dish again for family & friends cause it is soo f*ck-ing good! (pardon my language).  Hopefully you will love it too!



~Kellie Anne

 

Something New Sunday - Sour Patch Grapes

I have been dying to try these spring/summer snacks, since I first saw them on Pinterest a few months ago.  I had volunteered to bring some snack items to our family Easter and I thought this would be something my niece & nephews might like since they aren't a fan of my Rotel wraps.  Boy, was I right! :) They ate them up like candy (which they kind of are) but I was happy to seem them eat them up vs. the chocolate bunnies. 

Also, this has got to be one of the easiest recipes out there, with only two ingredients.  I think next time I make this I will have some of the little ones help me, cause they all like to help out especially in the kitchen. 

All you need is some grapes and your favorite Jello packet. You can use red or green grapes and any flavor of Jello that you like.  Wash the grapes and while they are still damp roll, cover and coat them in the unprepared Jello powder.  Once grapes are covered, placed them in a bowl and continue with clean grapes.  Once you have used up all the grapes (or Jello, whichever one comes first), place grapes in fridge, uncovered, for at least an hour to set coating.  Snack on these yummy grapes!!

 

  Tips:  I started with just a little Jello powder at a time and added more to the bowl as I went through the pile of grapes.  Some of grapes were a little two wet and caused the powder to start to change color and consistency.  Another tip I will give: when your not serving these, keep them cold (whether its a fridge or cooler).  As the grapes start to warm up, the coating starts to get soggy. 

I now can't wait till warmer weather, cause these will definitely be in my cooler on different outings!

~Kellie Anne


P.S - I didn't have my camera, so I had to use Aaron's phone to snap shots and that is why the pictures look so much cooler then my usual blog post.  And since I'm liking the way they look, this may just become a regular occurrence. Hmm.. I wonder what Aaron would say to that ;)

My First Roast

I am a meat & potato kind of girl. 

Growing up, we would have roast for Sunday dinner at least once a month and my mom always did a fabulous job preparing the roast.  And she always made it seem so effortless too! Just pop it in the oven and a few hours late, we would be eating the fall-off-the-bone beef dish.  So, I decided for tonight's supper, I would cook my first roast.  Normally I wouldn't be to worried about it, but Aaron's parents are coming over to join us.  I know that they will enjoy the meal, but there is still something about making a new dish for guest that always gets me worked up. 

Ingredients:
3# Rump Roast
1# - Baby Carrots
2 - Yellow Onion
1 cup - A1 Steak Sauce
1 Tbs. - Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 cup - Water
1 packet - Kraft Ranch Dry Mix



Directions:
I started off with a 3 pound rump roast that had been slightly thawed out over night in the fridge.  I put the roast in the crock-pot for an hour by itself on LOW; then drained out all the juices that had filled the pot during that time.  I then mixed the sauces, water and ranch mix together and poured over top of the roast.  Continue to let it cook on LOW for the next two hours.  I then added the carrots and onions; letting them cook on LOW & HIGH settings for five hours, alternating the heat every other hour.  I did this cause when I checked it every hour I didn't think that the meat was getting cooked properly but didn't want it to over cook (hence why I alternated that temperature). 

Total time - roast was in crock-pot = 8 hours.
Total time - vegetables were in crock-pot = 5 hours. 

Reviews:
Zesty! That was exactly what Aaron's parents thought after the first bite (which is always a good review, right!?).  The roast and veggies had a lot of flavor and I kept nibbling and sneaking carrots out of the pot but I will be honest, it wasn't nearly as tender as my mom's roast.  No one complained about having to cut the roast with a knife but I still wasn't happy.  I think next time I will add the sauce as soon as I start the roast and I think I will let the roast cook for at least 10 hours.  I hope that it will help make the roast more melt-in-your-mouth.  But I not realize how easy it is to cook a roast and though my first try wasn't the best, I'm not giving up on this meal.

~ Kellie Anne

yet another Buffalo Chicken Mac 'n Cheese recipe - Crock-pot style

If your a fan of Pinterest like I am, you know that there are a million, probably closer to a billion recipes floating around on the site.  You may have also noticed all of the recipes for macaroni and cheese on the site; it's crazy how many different ways you can make such a staple food (well it is in our house, I guess).  Yet here I am, going to show you another way that you can make mac 'n cheese with the ever popular ingredient of buffalo wing sauce and made in the crock-pot.  Full of kick and easy to make, it's sure to be a hit in your kitchen!

 
Ingredients:
  4 chicken breast - thawed out and cubed
  1 medium onion - chopped
  1 can of Cream of Chicken
  Frank's Hot Wing Sauce - amount is all based on your love for the spicy-ness
  1 cup sour cream
  1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  1/2 cup ranch dressing
  8 oz of cooked elbow noodles
  Salt & Pepper for taste

  Directions (by pictures):

In a large crock-pot (mine is a 5.5 quart), place the chicken and onion inside.

Combine cream of chicken and wing sauce together.  I used the can from the cream of chicken and used about 3/4 of a can of the wing sauce.  Like stated above its completely up to you on how much of the yummy-goodness (wing sauce) that you'd like to use.

Mix sauce concoction with the chicken & onions; cook on LOW for 6 hours.
 

* * I didn't get a picture of the water boiling or the noodles cooking; but  you all know what that looks like :) **

 

When the noodles are almost done, add the dressing, cheese and sour cream to crock-pot



OMG! It already looks yummy and I haven't even added the noodles yet!!



Noodles have been added and my taste buds are ready to chow down! :)
But wait, once the noodles have been added let everything continue to cook for about 10-15 minutes




Now you can enjoy it! :)
Looks like Aaron is giving this dish a thumbs up and he takes one of his final bites!


I will some day post up the recipe of the Buffalo Chicken Mac 'n Cheese that we also love to eat that is made with a from scratch cheese sauce and done on the stove top and oven-baked.  But for right now, I'm going to add yet another mac 'n cheese recipe to the already growing list on Pinterest! :)

~ Kellie Anne

Something New Sunday - Tuna Noodle Casserole

   I feel awful for not doing a 'Something New Sunday' last week.  Not that I have a lot of followers, but I was doing a really good job of doing a new recipe every Sunday since I had started this blog.  Oh well, today is a new day (and a new week for that matter) so it's time for a new recipe. 
   I have been craving tuna lately and missed the good-ole tuna casserole that I use to have in grade school.  I went to a small town school growing up with really nice lunch ladies, who actually took the time to make good meals for all the kids.  One of my favorite things that we had was the homemade buns. Oh. My. God. Just typing that made me want to go back in time to have some of those biscuits.  Focus Kellie, I'm talking about the tuna casserole that the lunch ladies made, not the delicious biscuits! The casserole was creamy with the noodles and tuna, yet crunchy cause they would top it with potato chips. 
  So, I wanted to try and duplicate the recipe but to add a little more flavor since my taste buds have grown-up since I was a little kid.  Here is my adult, yet kid friendly take on tuna noodle casserole.

 

Tuna Noodle Casserole: 

Ingredients:
8 oz cooked angel hair pasta (you could use spaghetti, linguine or any long pasta of your choice)
2 cans of tuna
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 can of corn (drained)
1 cup milk
3 tsp. butter
your choice of seasonings
bread crumbs
fried onions

Directions:
  Mix cooked noodles with tuna, soup and corn; I seasoned my dish today with black pepper and garlic salt. Pour into greased 9x13 casserole dish and cover with bread crumbs and french onions.  Drizzle milk and butter over top; cover with tin foil.  Place in preheated 400 degree and cook for 15 minutes. Stir mixture to make sure edges don't burn.  Recover and cook for another 15 minutes, during the last 5 minutes cover casserole with more bread crumbs and fried onions.  This dish is ready to eat once the bread crumbs and fried onions are a nice golden brown. Serve and enjoy this Lent-friendly meal! :)

Review: 
  Well I think I may have found my new calling as a school lunch lady! ;)
 
  No, but seriously this might give the Titonka School District lunch ladies a run for their money.  The noodles are soft, the sauce is creamy and the topping is uber crunchy!  The corn is a nice little touch, since most tuna dishes call for peas (which I would have loved to add, but Aaron doesn't like peas).  The dish makes probably 8 small portion servings, which is nice to have leftovers for both of us to take to work.  This dish is quite tasty and doesn't need a lot of seasonings, but Aaron suggested maybe some Old Bay seasonings next time.

  The next time I do make this recipe, I will add a little more milk and shorten the cooking time by 5 minutes or so.  Aaron thought it was fine between the mouthful of bites that he kept shoveling in.  Though he might have enjoyed it, I thought it was still dry and as the cook I like to make sure my recipes are perfect no matter who's eating it. 

Please let me know what you think! :)

~Kellie Anne


Close up of the yummy-goodness :)

Something New Sunday - Mexican Pot Pie

Today's 'Something New Sunday' truly is something new; in fact, I kind of just made it as I went.  It's a rainy, miserable day here in north central Iowa, so I got busy cleaning and one of the place I cleaned was my pantry & fridge.  As I'm cleaning I notice that I've got some Mexican infused ingredients that were tucked all the way to the back.  I instantly got hungry for tacos but while I kept digging/cleaning, I couldn't find any so I had to think of something else to make. So I decided to just go with the flow and add ingredients as I felt necessary. I had given my boyfriend, Aaron, a  heads up while I was cooking that this was just going to be a hodge-podge of foods thrown together.  Luckily, he's not picky and is always willing to try a new recipe.

Mexican Pot Pie
(an original by Kellie Anne)

Ingredients:
  1# - ground beef
  1 - small yellow onion; chopped
  2 - cans of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
  1 - jar of Tostitos Monetery Jack Queso dip
  1 - 10 oz can of enchilada sauce
  1/2 - cup of taco sauce (optional)
  2 - cups shredded cheddar cheese
  1 - tablespoon black pepper
  1 - teaspoon crushed red pepper
  jalapeno chili peppers (optional)

Directions:
  Brown ground beef and chopped onion until meat is no longer pink and onions are tender; drain off fat.  Add the taco sauce, enchilada sauce and peppers to meat & onions and simmer for 10 minutes (depending on how spicy you like your food, the taco sauce can be omitted since the enchilada sauce is pretty hot on it's own). 
  Grease a 9x13 baking dish and spread one can of the rolls to cover the bottom of the dish.  Cover the dough with the shredded cheese and then the meat sauce mixture.  Take the queso cheese dip and lightly cover the meat sauce mix.  I'm not a fan of jalapeno chili peppers, but Aaron is; so on half of the pan I coated the queso with the sliced peppers to give it a little more kick.  Carefully roll out the second can of crescent rolls and place over everything.  If you still have some queso cheese dip, spread a light layer on the top of the crescents.
  Cover pan with tin foil and place into preheated oven at 350.  Cook for 15 minutes covered and then another 15 minutes uncovered (or until crescents are lightly browned).  Slice and serve!

Review:
   I need to make-up new recipes more often! This recipe has a variety of flavors and textures with ever bite and as you see from the photo above, screams yumminess.  The crescents on both the top and the bottom of the dish, add a nice crunch and almost 'sandwich' in everything. The queso not only adds creamy-ness but lots of spicy kick.  We like our food spicy, but even for me I thought that meat sauce could have been tamed down so I think I'll opt out the taco sauce next time. I had used both the taco sauce and enchilada sauce, cause I didn't think the can of enchilada would be enough.  I didn't eat the half with the chili peppers, but Aaron loved the added goodness; he said they added a hint of sweet before the spice kicked in (you can see I added some more on top so I knew which side was his).  
 
  I hope you enjoy this dish that I came up with all on the fly. I can see this being made with shredded chicken and when red & green peppers get in season, I'll slice some up and add that too it. If you're not a fan of the queso dip, you could probably substitute more shredded cheese.

  We did have a fun time trying to name this dish; we came up with everything from Taco Mix-up to Spicy Mexican Sandwich.  When Aaron said that the corner piece was the best cause you got the buttery-flakiness of the crescents, Mexican Pot Pie just had to be the name of this new dish.  He loved it so much that he even broke his New Years Resolution of not taking any seconds with this dish.  That's when I know I have made a good dish! :)

Well, I'm super full from eating and blogging all about my creation, so I'm off to bed!

Enjoy!
~ Kellie Anne

Something New Sunday - "Crack" Chicken

I am a Pinterest-addict and my boyfriend doesn't object to me trying to new recipes that I have found. I came across this recipe on Pinterest and the caption was titled "Crack" Chicken, which instantly got my attention.  Surprisingly, this was one of the first recipes that I have found off Pinterest where I actually had all the ingredients in my house.  I want to give credit where credit is due, so here is the original link where I found the recipe: http://www.mytimepassages.com/blogs/pinterest/2012/01/pinterst-winfail-bourbon-crack-chicken-crockpot-style/

“Crack” Chicken – Crock-pot Style

Ingredients:
2 lbs boneless (uncooked) chicken breasts cut into bite-size pieces
2 tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove crushed
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup light apple juice
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons chili sauce (you can use ketchup depending on your spice level)
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup reduced sodium soy sauce

Coat chicken with cornstarch.

 

Whisk all ingredients into crock-pot and add chicken.

 

Cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4.

 My "Non-Professional" Review: 
      I can see why they call it "Crack" Chicken cause it's highly addictive and I ate WAY to much of it (but that was fine, cause like I said, it was delicious).  It's also highly addictive because of how easy it is to make and if you are a looking for a easy-peasy recipe, this is it!! Literally, when everything can be mixed in the crockpot and you can walk away, it doesn't get much easier than that.
      I love spicy food and for me, this dish has the perfect amount (but you can always cut back the amount of red pepper that you use and use ketchup instead of chili sauce if you don't like spice). The raw chicken was fully cooked during the four hours and was really moist too.  The sauce does need something to soak-up all the yummy sauce and I thought that rice would be a perfect. Welp, I didn't have any so I did pour the chicken and sauce over penne pasta (but I do know next time I make it, I will have some rice to eat with it).


I'm gunna leave you with one last photo of my almost 'finished' product

Enjoy!!

~Kellie Anne

Something New Sunday - Lasagna w/ White Sauce

 "The trouble with eating Italian food is that 5 or 6 days later you're hungry again." George Miller, British writer

 

This is EXACTLY how I felt after I got done eating this new crock-pot recipe and the breadsticks I made to go with it were the perfect "Italian" touch.

Lasagna with White Sauce

Ingredients:
 1 - 8 oz box of lasagna noodles; cooked & drained
 1 - pound ground beef
 1 - chopped onion
 1 - 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
 1 - can of tomato sauce
 1 - beef bouillon cube (I used beef bouillon granules since I didn't have cubes)
 1 1/2 teaspoons - Italian seasoning
 1 1/2 teaspoons - black pepper
 1 teaspoon - salt
 1/2 teaspoons - red pepper
White Sauce:
 2 tablespoons - melted butter or margarine
 3 tablespoons - all purpose flour
 2 cups - milk
 1 cup - mozzarella cheese
 1 teaspoon - black pepper
 1 teaspoon - garlic powder

Directions:
   Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 5 minutes; drain. (I used the non-boiling, ready to use lasagna noodles and it still turned out yummy).  Brown ground beef and onion together, until onion is tender and beef is no longer pink in center; drain.  Mix in tomatoes, tomato sauce, bouillon and seasonings (I opted out the salt, since I'm trying to cut back salt in all my cooking recipes). Pour in bottom of crock-pot and layer lasagna noodles on top (I had to break the noodles to cover the meat).
   Meanwhile, in a small bowl mix together melted butter, flour, milk, cheese, pepper and garlic powder.  Cover the white sauce over top the noodles.
   Cover and cook on LOW for 4 to 6 hours or on HIGH for 2 to 3 hours.  In the last 30 minutes, turn crock-pot to HIGH (if cooking on LOW) and top with more mozzarella cheese.  Serve when cheese is melted.  Serves 10 to 12

Well, I just finished up cleaning up the dishes and let me tell you, this meal was delicious! The meat sauce was delicious (and a lot healthier then using processed spaghetti sauce) and surprisingly the white sauce was really great (and might be seen in more recipes).  I was worried during the whole time the dish was cooking that the noodles wouldn't cook properly, but I was so wrong; they were soft but crunchy on the edges like my mom's lasagna was growing up.  Mine was cooked on LOW for about 4 hours and then on KEEP WARM mode for about 45 minutes, cause the edges were starting to brown.  30 minutes before serving, I turned it back to LOW and topped it with cheese; so total cooking time for me was little less then 5.5 hours.  My parents joined my boyfriend and I for the meal and they both agreed it was superb and my dad even went back for 'thirds'.  This will definitely be a repeat dish.

Today was actually a two recipe Something New Sunday, as I made Pesto Breadsticks (seen in picture above), but it's getting late so I will try post that recipe tomorrow. 

Goodnight Folks and Enjoy!!

~Kellie Anne

Something New Sunday - Biscuits & Gravy

So, I am already failing at this whole daily blogging thing since it's been four days since my last post. Sorry peeps, thou I'm not sure if there is anybody really out there reading this (haha). #epicfailing if you ask me

Anywho, I wanted to start something new in 2013 (besides this blog). I have tons of cooking books in my house and have found tons of recipes on Pinterest that I want to recreate. And what better way then to start off the new week then with a new recipe; hence the title 'Something New Sunday'. My goal is to post a new recipe that I've never made with pictures from my non-professional looking kitchen and reviews from whomever eats the meal.

'Somewhat Homemade' Biscuits & Gravy

 

 

It was Christmas Day and I was over at my boyfriend's parents place and I randomly got the craving for biscuits and gravy. When I let everyone else know about my craving, I was told about this great little 'cheater' method of getting that great biscuits and gravy taste but without all the work. Sounds like my kind of recipe. :)

 

Two simple items to make the gravy.  Like I said, it's kind of a 'homemade' ;)



Both items can be found at your local grocery store
 

Start with a package of Bear Creek Creamy Potato soup mix.  Yes, I know its a soup mix but when you add less water then the soup recipe calls for, you get a thicker, gravy like mixture.  Instead of 8 cups of water like the soup would need, I only did 7 cups.  Bring water to a bowl, add soup mix and let simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.  Remember to stir occasionally, so the soup don't stick to the bottom of the pot.

 


The soup does have little pieces of potato in it (which I thought it was a nice added touch)

You also need to brown 1# of pork sausage in a skillet.  I used Farmland Pork Sausage without any added MSG (so it's kind of healthy).  If you wouldn't want all the calories of pork, you could definitely use turkey sausage or a substitute of your choice.

 

Obviously you can't have biscuits & gravy without the biscuits.  Well, I thought I had canned biscuits in my fridge but I didn't so I improvised with Pillsbury crescent rolls.  Bake as direceted.



Once the soup/gravy is cooked and at desired thickness and the sausage is no longer pink in the center and fat has been drained, add the two together.

Cook for about 5-7 minutes to make sure that the sausage gravy is throughly mixed and hot. 

Take a couple of hot biscuits and smother (and I mean smother cause this stuff is GOOOOD) the biscuits in the sausage gravy that you have made. 

Overall review is that this stuff makes a pretty hearty breakfast.  I didn't add a whole lot of seasoning to the sausage and just a little pepper to the soup/gravy while it was cooking.  Please feel free to add comments/questions and I will try my best to answer as soon as possible.  Also, since this is my first recipe post, I'd like to have some tips on how I can make it easier for others to follow my steps.

Enjoy!!
~ Kellie Anne